694 research outputs found
Tunable lasers for water vapor measurements and other lidar applications
A tunable dye laser suitable for differential absorption (DIAL) measurements of water vapor in the troposphere was constructed. A multi-pass absorption cell for calibration was also constructed for use in atmospheric DIAL measurements of water vapor
Spacelab experiment definition study on phase transition and critical phenomena in fluids: Interim report on experimental justification
Pure fluids and fluid mixtures near critical points are identified and are related to the progress of several disciplines. Consideration is given to thermodynamic properties, transport properties, and the complex nonlinear phenomena which occur when fluids undergo phase transitions in the critical region. The distinction is made between practical limits which may be extended by advances in technology and intrinsic ones which arise from the modification of fluid properties by the earth's gravitational field. The kinds of experiments near critical points which could best exploit the low gravity environment of an orbiting laboratory are identified. These include studies of the index of refraction, constant volume specific heat, and phase separation
Light Scattering from Nonequilibrium Concentration Fluctuations in a Polymer solution
We have performed light-scattering measurements in dilute and semidilute
polymer solutions of polystyrene in toluene when subjected to stationary
temperature gradients. Five solutions with concentrations below and one
solution with a concentration above the overlap concentration were
investigated. The experiments confirm the presence of long-range nonequilibrium
concentration fluctuations which are proportional to , where
is the applied temperature gradient and is the wave number of
the fluctuations. In addition, we demonstrate that the strength of the
nonequilibrium concentration fluctuations, observed in the dilute and
semidilute solution regime, agrees with theoretical values calculated from
fluctuating hydrodynamics. Further theoretical and experimental work will be
needed to understand nonequilibrium fluctuations in polymer solutions at higher
concentrations.Comment: revtex, 16 pages, 7 figures. J. Chem. Phys., to appea
Apoptosis detection in retinal ganglion cells using quantitative changes in multichannel fluorescence colocalization
KcapTR488 is a dual-fluorophore peptide sensor for the real-time reporting of programmed cell death by fluorescence imaging. KcapTR488 contains a nuclear localization sequence (NLS) conjugated with Texas Red, a caspase-cleavable sequence (DEVD), and a C-terminus conjugated to Alexa Fluor 488 (AF488). The synthesis and preliminary evaluation in cellulo of KcapTR488 for monitoring cell death by fluorescence imaging has been previously reported, but its utility in vivo has yet to be tested or validated. Herein, in vitro solution experiments verified the intramolecular fluorescence resonance energy transfer (FRET) between the two fluorophores and enabled a quantitative analysis of enzyme rates and selectivity. The sensor delivery kinetics in live rat models were quantified by ex vivo fluorescence microscopy. Studies in healthy control retinas demonstrated that KcapTR488 concentrated in the nucleus of retinal ganglion cells (RGC), with a strong colocalization of red and green fluorescence signals producing robust FRET signals, indicating an intact reporter. By contrast, using an acute but mild NMDA-induced retinal injury model, dual-color confocal ex vivo microscopy of cleaved KcapTR488 identified sensor activation as early as 2 h after injection. Quantitative changes in fluorescence colocalization were superior to changes in FRET for monitoring injury progression. Longitudinal monitoring revealed that the NLS-Texas Red fragment of the cleaved sensor moved out of the cell body, down the axon, and exited the retina, consistent with anterograde axonal transport. Thus, KcapTR488 may be a powerful tool to study RGC death pathways in live preclinical models of glaucoma
Nature of Resonant Photoemission in Gd
The phenomenon of resonant photoemission happens when, in addition to a direct photoemission channel, a second indirect channel opens up as the absorption threshold of a core level is crossed. A massive increase in emission cross section can occur, but the nature of the process remains clouded. Using novel magnetic linear dichroism in photoelectron spectroscopy experiments and theoretical calculations, we can now clearly demonstrate that temporal matching of the processes as well as energy matching is a requirement for true resonant photoemission.
Investigation of Resonant Photoemission in Gd with X-Ray Linear Dichroism
The constructive summing of direct and indirect channels above the absorption threshold of a core level can cause a massive increase in the emission cross section, leading to a phenomenon called resonant photoemission. Using novel magnetic linear dichroism in angular distribution photoelectron spectroscopy experiments and theoretical simulations, we have probed the nature of the resonant photoemission process in Gd metal. It now appears that temporal matching as well as energy matching is a requirement for true resonant photoemission
Highlights of the Zeno Results from the USMP-2 Mission
The Zeno instrument, a High-precision, light-scattering spectrometer, was built to measure the decay rates of density fluctuations in xenon near its liquid-vapor critical point in the low-gravity environment of the U.S. Space Shuttle. Eliminating the severe density gradients created in a critical fluid by Earth's gravity, we were able to make measurements to within 100 microKelvin of the critical point. The instrument flew for fourteen days in March, 1994 on the Space Shuttle Columbia, STS-62 flight, as part of the very successful USMP-2 payload. We describe the instrument and document its performance on orbit, showing that it comfortably reached the desired 3 microKelvin temperature control of the sample. Locating the critical temperature of the sample on orbit was a scientific challenge; we discuss the advantages and short-comings of the two techniques we used. Finally we discuss problems encountered with making measurements of the turbidity of the sample, and close with the results of the measurement of the decay rates of the critical-point fluctuations
Raman scattering and photoluminescence studies of two-dimensional electron systems in Ge/GaAs heterostructures
Resonant Raman scattering experiments on n-Ge/n-GaAs (100) heterostructures reveal transitions involving quasi-two-dimensional electron states in Ge-accumulation layers. The experiments were performed in the range of the E1-gap of Ge. The electronic scattering transforms into E1-luminescence as the laser energy is tuned above the resonance. Spectra obtained at higher excitation energies show luminescence bands associated with the E1 and E1 + [Delta]1-gap of Ge. The latter results are compared with recent data for bulk heavily-doped Ge.Peer Reviewedhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/25856/1/0000419.pd
Local Optical Spectroscopy in Quantum Confined Systems: A Theoretical Description
A theoretical description of local absorption is proposed in order to
investigate spectral variations on a length scale comparable with the extension
of the relevant quantum states. A general formulation is derived within the
density-matrix formalism including Coulomb correlation, and applied to the
prototypical case of coupled quantum wires. The results show that excitonic
effects may have a crucial impact on the local absorption with implications for
the spatial resolution and the interpretation of near-field optical spectra.Comment: To appear in Phys. Rev. Lett. - 11 pages, 3 PostScript figures (1
figure in colors) embedded. Uses RevTex, and psfig style
The Aharonov-Bohm effect for an exciton
We study theoretically the exciton absorption on a ring shreded by a magnetic
flux. For the case when the attraction between electron and hole is
short-ranged we get an exact solution of the problem. We demonstrate that,
despite the electrical neutrality of the exciton, both the spectral position of
the exciton peak in the absorption, and the corresponding oscillator strength
oscillate with magnetic flux with a period ---the universal flux
quantum. The origin of the effect is the finite probability for electron and
hole, created by a photon at the same point, to tunnel in the opposite
directions and meet each other on the opposite side of the ring.Comment: 13 RevTeX 3.0 pages plus 4 EPS-figures, changes include updated
references and an improved chapter on possible experimental realization
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